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Ship MS Tolstoi: St. Petersburg - Moscow, River Cruise 18 Jul 2010 - 30 Jul 2010
Route description:
Save vibrant Moscow for the end of your journey and start from magnificent St. Petersburg. This voyage willtake you from the Gulf of Finland to Lake Onega and then from the River Volga to the Moskva River.
Itinerary
| Day 1 | Arrival  Your personal driver will meet you at the airport (he will be holding a sign with your name on it) and take you to your ship. There is no evening program, as you will probably want to get some rest. You will be served dinner in the ship's restaurant after which you can relax in the bar or get some sleep. |
| Day 2 | St. Petersburg .jpg) St. Petersburg is Russia's cultural and historical treasure, one of the world's most beautiful cities, and one of its top ten tourist destinations according to "The Forbes Traveler." It is known as the Venice of North thanks to its numerous canals and hundreds of bridges. It is sometimes called Russia's Versailles thanks to dozens of opulent palaces and royal estates. It can be rightly called a living museum - so many of its buildings are part of Russia's history.
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| Day 3 | St. Petersburg  First half of the day you will have to explore St. Petersburg on your own. You can also take an optional tour to Catherine Palace, one of the worlds most interesting palaces. It is located 15 miles away from St. Petersburg, and was a summer residence of Tzars.
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| Day 4 | St. Petersburg  This day is reserved for the trip outside of the city, to Peterhof - royal residence on the outskirts of the city where Russian Tsars spend most of their time during warm time of the year.Peterhof is located on the banks of Gulf of Finland most famous for its parks and fountains that mimic those of Versailles. Peter the Great spent most of his time in this place because it was close to the wharfs where Peter was raising Russian navy. Peter build hundreds of fountains to entertain his noble guests, including you.
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| Day 5 | Svirstroy .jpg) Svitrstroy is 100 miles from St. Petersburg with only a population of 1000. Enjoy some free time to walk through this unspoiled Russian village and browse through the irresistible handmade trinkets.
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| Day 6 | Kizhi-Island  Kizhi-Island Kizhi is the name of unique island located on the Lake Onega. In the center of the island stands the amazing Transfiguration Church. This wooden church and its 22 domes are built without a single nail. In fact, originally, the Transfiguration Church was located in another place. The Bolsheviks, who had little, if no, respect for religion, had some respect for its architectural value, so they decided to move this unique church as far from the major cities and people as possible, to distant Kizhi Island. You will devote this day on the island to the open-air museum of wooden architecture
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| Day 7 | Goritsy .jpg) Goritsy is famous for the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery (1397). This monastery's strong walls and bastions were used by some nobles as a safe house during the Times of Trouble. The Polish armies stormed it, but never succeeded in capturing it. Unfortunately, the monastery was not so successful in repelling the attacks of other invaders four centuries later. The Bolsheviks closed the monastery in early 20th century and sent its monks to the prison camps.
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| Day 8 | Yaroslavl  By today standards Yaroslavl is small, but its place in Russia's history and culture cannot be underestimated. Before it was annihilated by the Mongols it was Russia's largest city, its economic, political, cultural and scientific center. It was rebuilt shortly after but was once again burnt to the ground. While the Mongols had been preoccupied with Yaroslavl, Moscow was able to harness enough power to overthrow the "Mongol yoke."
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| Day 9 | Uglich  Uglich is a small town located on the Volga River. The place was the best-defended fortress of Moscovy and it was burnt on number of occasions by Lithuanians, Tatars, and even the grand prince of Tver, the city which rivaled Moscow.Uglich is most famous for the tragic events that took place in 1591 when the 10-year old prince Dimitry, the last heir to the throne of the ancient Ruyrik dynasty, was killed here (as historians now agree, by Boris Godunov, advisor to Dimitry, who wanted the throne for himself). Dimitry's death plunged Russia into decades of political turmoil known as Time of Trouble.
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| Day 10 | Moscow  Moscow is Russia's largest city, its political and economic capital. The town of Moscow was the center of Moscovy - a small principality that unified the Russian lands against the Mongols in the late 14th century and has ruled Russia ever since. As the Mongols burnt major cities across Russia, refugees fled to smaller principalities like Moscow, Tver and Nizhny Novgorod. Through bribes, diplomacy and coercion, Moscow overcame its two rivals to become "Russia's first city." Moscow's role was briefly challenged when Tsar Peter the Great moved Russia's capital to his new city, St Petersburg, on the shores of the Baltic Sea.
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| Day 11 | Moscow  Moscow Subway. Located deep underground, it is also a nuclear shelter and a museum of Soviet socialist art that celebrates the unity of Soviet republics. The unity is no longer there, but the most amazing subway system in the world is. By the way, Moscow Subway carries 3 mln passengers daily. You will take a short ride on Moscow Subway to get a bit of taste of what its like to live in Moscow.
Tretyakov Picture Gallery is Moscow's best collection of art and one of the best collections of Russian paintings in the world. The gallery started as a private collection of wealthy 19th century merchant Ivan Tretyakov, who donated his collection to the city.
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| Day 12 | Moscow  This day is very special, as we will go inside the Kremlin - the ancient castle built to withstand the Mongol hordes. Throughout history, the Kremlin has been the center of political power in Russia and it remains a symbolic political center even today, as the official site of the inauguration ceremony of the Russian president (they don't actually live or work here).The Kremlin is a living museum of Russia's history. Its inside wasn't built overnight, rather various rulers added new pieces over time (and some, like Napoleon, plundered from it). This cultural and historical treasure has been so well preserved that it seems that you are traveling in time. You will see the most interesting places in the Kremlin as you follow our professional guide in the steps of some of the world's greatest leaders and its most terrible dictators.
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| Day 13 | Departure  DepartureOur unforgettable journey across this unique country is coming to an end. It is time to say farewell to Russia and your new friends. Your personal driver will take you to the airport |
